Circular Bio-Based Business models to create high-value Bio-based products in integrated value chains

Project Information

C4B

Grant agreement ID: 101135323

DOI

10.3030/101135323

EC signature date 9 November 2023

Start date 1 January 2024

End date 31 December 2027

Funded under

• Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 3 994 894,36

Coordinated by

PNO INNOVATION SRL
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - C4B (Circular Bio-Based Business models to create high-value Bio-based products in integrated value chains)

Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2025-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Primary production in agriculture and forestry represents an essential part of the EU circular bioeconomy. However, the involvement of primary producers in circular bio-based economy is still limited, and the benefits are in most cases not fairly distributed along the value chain, to the disadvantage of primary producers. Fair and sustainable business models that create opportunities for rural entrepreneurship are therefore needed. The aim of C4B is to accelerate the development of rural communities and their economic viability by developing new fair and sustainable business models for different value chains. C4B business models will be designed to balance the share of power and profits across value chains and to enhance the cooperation among farmers, foresters and industry. This project will advance the understanding of bio-based value chains by carrying out a holistic analysis of different case studies in EU that considers technology, business environment, primary producers’ behaviour, contractual agreements and ownership, and sustainability. By providing financial support to third parties, C4B will demonstrate the applicability, scalability and replicability of the new business models in different settings and geographical areas. Joining forces with complementary and trans-disciplinary stakeholders, the C4B consortium will define key R&I priorities to be implemented by means of the coming EU funding programmes to support the EU Bioeconomy Strategy, as well policy recommendations to advise Member States for implementing effective national CAP Strategic Plans that entail bioeconomy interventions. Main C4B activities are:
-To build a C4B Stakeholders’ Panel and implement the multi-actor approach (MAA) to co-create solutions and innovations, and to improve the capacity of businesses and individuals for implementing bioeconomy measures.
-To advance the understanding of bio-based value chains by carrying out a holistic analysis on different case studies that considers multiple aspects (i.e. technological factors, business models and business environment, primary producers’ behaviour, contractual agreements and ownership, fairness and power balance, and sustainability).
-To develop, simulate and promote new fair, scalable and replicable business models for different primary production sectors that support the vibrancy and economic viability of rural communities.
-To evaluate the sustainability benefits of the innovative business models for farmers, foresters and rural actors.
- To demonstrate the scalability and replicability of the C4B business models in different settings and geographical areas.
- To promote bioeconomy-related interventions in the new CAP.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Since the start of the project, C4B has established the foundations of its multi-actor approach (MAA) by setting up an inclusive governance framework and engaging a wide range of stakeholders from agriculture, forestry, industry, clusters, and advisory organisations. A comprehensive stakeholder mapping exercise was carried out at the beginning of the project, resulting in a consolidated database of relevant organisations across Europe. Based on this work, a Governance and Stakeholder Engagement Strategy was designed.
To support the stakeholders’ engagement activities and MAA, the C4B Stakeholder Panel was officially launched on the project website (https://stakeholders-panel.c4b-project.eu/). The C4B Stakeholder Panel consists in an interactive platform designed for collaboration and knowledge sharing among professionals across circular bioeconomy sector.
Throughout the first RP, C4B implemented a series of MAA activities , involving more than 100 stakeholders. These sessions gathered feedback from farmers, foresters, processors and other actors on the analysis of case studies, helping to validate findings and fill knowledge gaps. Innovative participatory means such as group-based economic experiments and interactive online boards were used in the MAA activities.
In parallel, C4B research partners (WR, WU, LEITAT and UHOH) developed a holistic framework to analyse bio-based value chains from multiple perspectives: technology, business environment, contractual arrangements and ownership, fairness and power balance, and sustainability. Using this framework, nine case studies across Europe were assessed, including case studies covering vineyards and cereals in Italy and Greece, wood in Italy and Sweden, potatoes and peatlands in Germany, and apples in the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland). Data from case studies were collected by FAB FBG, BFR, CluBE and UHOH in their respective regions. The analysis provided insights into technological bottlenecks, economic viability, behavioural drivers and barriers, as well as issues of fairness.
A sustainability assessment complemented this work, including environmental LCA, techno-economic evaluations, and social impact assessments. Results highlighted the role of feedstock types, among others, in determining the viability and sustainability of circular business models, as well as their expected contributions to several UN SDGs.
Building on these results, C4B has started the development of new fair and replicable BMs that integrate economic, environmental, social and fairness dimensions. This work is progressing on the basis of the case study results.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

C4B contributes to strengthening the EU bioeconomy and enhancing the vibrancy and economic viability of rural areas by developing fair, sustainable and replicable business models. In doing so, the project goes beyond the state of the art by:
i) Building a cooperative environment: while primary producers are often marginalised in current bio-based value chains, C4B actively engages them through a well-structured MAA. This will boost the collaboration among actors, enhancing impact in agricultural and forestry innovation in the longer term.
ii) Providing a holistic analysis of value chains: C4B introduces an integrated framework that simultaneously addresses multiple aspects, thus generating a systemic understanding of enablers, barriers and interdependencies in bio-based value chains.
iii) Exploring ownership and contractual models: C4B assesses how cooperatives and different ownership structures influence innovation and fairness in bio-based BMs, generating new evidence to support decision-making.
iv) Integrating fairness into business model innovation: C4B designs innovative BMs that are not only economically and environmentally viable, but also perceived as fair by all actors, an essential condition for long-term adoption.
vi) Advancing sustainability-oriented strategies: whereas many existing models prioritise economic returns, C4B develops dedicated environmental, social and economic indicators, fostering sustainability-oriented strategies.
Through financial support to third parties, C4B will assess the replication potential of the C4B business models, ensuring their applicability in diverse contexts and paving the way for their wider uptake across Europe.